Filling a politician's vacated seat after winning a bid for different office has proven to be quite costly for taxpayers.

I'm sure there are rules that force some to resign before they run for a different office and yet some can retain their seat while running, often returning to it after losing. I'm confused already.

We wouldn't have to deal with any of this if candidates just promised to serve out their term. However, it is human nature to reach for "something better" regardless of promises made.

Mark Ida Salt Lake

LAUDABLE EFFORT

HISTORIAN PRAISEDFOR DIGGING DEEPER

Rick Rogers should be commended for his efforts to find solid evidence to prove that other visitors came to the Hawaiian Islands prior to Captain James Cook ("Cook not 1st European in Isles, amateur historian says," May 17).

As Rogers has written, there are many indications of previous encounters of Hawaiians with Europeans or Asians prior to Cook's visits in 1778 and 1779. The presence of rusted iron, feathered capes and headpieces using Spanish-favored colors of red and yellow, myths of new residents coming ashore from ships, Hawaiians with reddish hair, old bones that might show syphilitic injury, language similarities to that of other countries — these are a few of the tantalizing suggestions that lead investigators to question who may have visited these islands in earlier centuries.

Cook did not indicate that he "discovered" Hawaii. The old map that Cook originally brought along on his third voyage showed islands with Spanish names, Los Majos. They were located at the same latitude as Hawaii, but apparently their longitude had been inaccurately recorded.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to obtain physical proof of pre-Cook visitors? Three cheers to historian Rick Rogers for trying to find the answer.

Eleanor C. Nordyke Honolulu

LEE CATALUNA

POLITICS TO PODS, IT'S ALWAYS A GREAT READ

In a career filled with excellent writing, Lee Cataluna's columns are only getting better. From trenchant political analysis to mundane problems like scraping monkeypod residue off one's slippers, her byline means superb reading. She is incapable of writing a bad sentence and I hope the new administration keeps her employed.

Georgette Canon Honolulu

IMMIGRATION

IF YOU LIVE HERE, YOU ARE AMERICAN FIRST

Many Latino and Hispanics, as well as Al Sharpton and Democrat politicians, are saying that Arizona's immigration law is racist.

But something must be done about illegal immigration. If someone doesn't step up to do something, it's going to ruin our country. There are some people who put their interests and power above the welfare and survival of our country.

The United States is not bulletproof or immortal; our beloved country cannot take care of the entire world. I hope and pray that we wake up before it is too late.

We should all be Americans first, not Mexican- Americans or African-Americans. I don't want to be called a German-American just because my family came from Germany.

Gene Tress Air Force Master sergeant (retired), Honolulu

YOUTH SHELTER

DHS NOT CONCERNED WITH NEIGHBORHOOD

Janice Okubo from the Department of Health said "community issues really didn't play into our decision to end the contract" in closing the Hale Kipa youth shelter in Mānoa. ("Youth shelter in Mānoa shuts down," May 20).

Okubo's statement just proves that no matter how a community suffers from having such a housing in the neighborhood, it makes no difference to the Department of Health, the Legislature, the Mānoa Neighborhood Board, the United Way.

Give Hale Kipa $11 million a year to run a house for needy juveniles, hire counselors who have behavioral problems themselves and who cannot control their charges. Let the juveniles run rampant, give them free time so they can scout the neighborhood and know which houses to burglarize. Give Hale Kipa $11 million a year so they can put up a great front — not just an office but a luxurious suite of offices in a nice building in town.

Before Hale Kipa moved across the street in 1983, my husband and I tried to get the neighbors to appear before the Mānoa Neighborhood Board to fight against Hale Kipa even operating. We got no help. I am so happy I now live in a community where a Hale Kipa would never be allowed.

M. Chang Mililani

SEAT BELTS

WHAT ABOUT SAFETY FOR PICKUP TRUCKS?

Once again we watch the "Click It or Ticket" on TV. The officer says, "We're going to save lives."

This is probably true, but not for everyone. People in autos must wear seat belts, but people riding in the back of pickup trucks do not. So I guess they are exempt from having their lives saved.

A few weeks ago a Kaimukī High School senior flew out of the bed of a pickup and died. Just before that, a 13-year-old boy was killed when he was thrown from a pickup. In 2006 four women also died when they were thrown out of a pickup.

Even school buses carrying our children are not required to install seat belts. Who is going to save their lives? Not our useless lawmakers.

There is a law that animals and cargo have to be caged or tied down. But not humans. Maybe a class-action suit would wake up our lawmakers. This insanity on our highways continues every year, without any bills heard or brought up at the Legislature. And we all know there will more deaths.

Wake up, Hawai'i, and get these clowns out of office.

Eugene Cordero Pearl City

VISUAL BLIGHT

CANDIDATES' SIGNS TOO BIG, TOO EARLY

The elections are still months away but already some candidates have started littering our communities with campaign signs. Prosecutor candidate Don Pacarro has erected huge, billboard-sized banners at various locations across Oahu even though the primary election is more than five months away.

And he is not the only one jumping the gun. The Outdoor Circle already is receiving citizen complaints that these signs are going up too early, are too large and too ugly!

Our recommendation to all candidates is that they post campaign signs no sooner than 60 days before the elections and that campaign signs be no larger than 2 by 4 feet. By following these guidelines all candidates can be assured that voters will see their signs well before the elections while showing respect for our communities and the people they hope to represent.

We urge all residents to take note of which candidates follow these reasonable guidelines and use that information in considering which candidates will receive your vote.